04 Silent Witness
by Margaret Price
Summary: The Doctor answers a distress call and lands on what appears to be a deserted space station. A short story with the Fourth Doctor.
1. Chapter 1

Silent Witness by Margaret Price © 1993

Author's Note: This is the fourth in an arc with companion Jason Krystovan, who was introduced in the story, "The Alliance of Death."

For those who have not read it, here is a quick rundown: Jason is an Alterran, a silicon-based non-humanoid lifeform with the ability to change form. (Yes, you need to know this for this story.) He is just over one hundred years old but takes on the appearance of an eighteen-year human male old. He is a physician, herbalist, chemist, and is trying to learn as much as he can from the Doctor about time travel.

* * *

**SILENT WITNESS**

**BY MARGARET PRICE**

**ONE**

After months of careful planning, the evacuation was finally underway. They had lost contact with their home system and then single-handedly repelled an alien attack. Then basic supplies started to run dangerously low, and it was all too obvious that help would not be forthcoming. No one had responded to their numerous distress calls. Eventually the crew of the decaying Spaceport Excelsior came to accept the fact that they were completely cut off from the rest of the galaxy and plans for the current evacuation began in earnest.

The nearest planet had already been surveyed and approved for colonization before a distant war broke out. The plans for the colony were abandoned as the government turned its attentions to matters closer to home, apparently forgetting all about the station and its crew at the same time.

With no other options, the station's Commander decided to create a colony of his own by moving the entire crew of just over one hundred and fifty to the planet's surface, abandoning the decaying station for good.

Teams of technicians, mechanics and pilots swarmed over the Spaceport, stripping essential systems and transporting them to the surface, reassembling them to form the base around which the colony would be established.

In one of the station's stripped offices, a young woman was going over a checklist. Her dark uniform contrasted sharply with her golden blond hair, its unusual iridescent highlights no longer able to soften her features. She looked up when the intercom buzzed and a voice called, "Aurora, aren't you even going to say good-bye?"

Aurora had to hit the button with her fist to get it to work. "I'll be there in a minute, Sandy. I wanted to make sure you hadn't forgotten anything."

"Oh, Aurora, don't be such a worry wart. If we've forgotten anything, you can bring it when you come," Sandy said brightly before switching off.

Aurora sighed heavily, wishing she didn't have to stay behind yet again. One of the spaceships had been renovated for the sole purpose of shuttling the crew to the surface. Lots had been draw to determine the order in which everyone would be evacuated. After this trip, there were only seven people left to transport, one of whom was Aurora.

Half an hour after talking to Sandy on the intercom, Aurora was watching her depart. As the craft pulled away from the Spaceport, she sighed heavily. It would be another two days before the shuttle returned for them.

"Well, now what do we do?" asked Eric, a sandy-haired young man who had been just as unlucky as his companions.

"You mean besides wait? Again," replied Shawna.

"I suppose we should ask our Acting Commander," Eric said playfully, turning to the baffled Aurora.

"Me?" she gasped unbelievingly. "Why me?"

"Because you're the highest ranking officer left onboard," Chief Technician Ramsay informed. "Ridiculous regulation, isn't it?"

"I'm not a Commander, Ramsay, I'm a medical officer," Aurora protested, much to the amusement of the others. In the midst of this minor upheaval, there was a loud clang and the Spaceport was rocked by the apparent impact of a large meteor. The lights flickered momentarily and several of the main systems, including long-range communications, shorted out.

A few hours later, there was more bad news. During the shuttle's landing, the guidance system malfunctioned and instead of a gentle touchdown, it experienced what was more like a controlled crash.

"I'm sorry to have to tell you all this," the voice of the station's true Commander said through the static, "but I'm afraid the ship will never fly again."

After a stunned silence, Ramsay replied, "Commander, there may still be a way. Get all the technical people together and have them set up the transmat station. You should have everything down there to build one. If I can boost the power at this end, we might be able to beam over to you."

There was a long silence as the Commander considered. "Are you sure you have everything you need?" he asked pointedly.

"I'll strip down what's left of those derelicts in dock, if I have to, sir. So tell those Techs over there that they've got work to do."

What followed was one disheartening failure after another. The ground crew had been able to beam up some supplies during a test run, but after this the station's power started to fail. In the end, there was nothing left to do but wait for the inevitable as the decaying Spaceport ground to a halt.


	2. Chapter 2

**TWO**

"Doctor, there's nothing here!" Jason protested as he followed the Time Lord out of the TARDIS. "You saw the scanner. It's just an old, abandoned junk yard."

The Doctor grunted noncommittally as he looked around the empty storeroom in which the TARDIS had materialized. "Well, if it's abandoned, then we'll leave," he stated.

Jason turned to go back into the police box, stopping when the Doctor added forcefully, "_After_ I've had a quick look round. Somebody sent that distress call, and you never can tell."

His companion threw him an angry scowl. As far has he was concerned, this was yet another deviation from their intended destination, which just happened to be Earth. They were closer than they had ever been before and Jason was getting very annoyed with the continual delays. It seemed to him that he would _never_ get to Earth. Not if he left it up to the Doctor.

"You can look round all you like, Doctor," the Alterran said sulkily. "I'll be here in the TARDIS when you get back."

The Doctor had already wandered out into the corridor and popped his head back around the door. "Oh, come on, Jason. Where's your sense of adventure?" he asked baitingly.

His companion wasn't taking the bait. "I'm keeping it in reserve until we reach Earth. So have a nice walk. I'm going to finish my calculations with K-9."

"Don't be like that—"

Jason's temper flared. "Doctor, you've been promising to take me to Earth forever, but something _always_ stops us. It's bad enough when it's the Time Lords, but now you have to go and drag me halfway across the quadrant to get to a junkyard, of all places. And now you expect me to go and look at it as if it were the Taj Mahal. Well, for once, I'm not coming."

A surprised look came to the Doctor's face. "Now how do _you_ know about the Taj Mahal?"

"I read about it in one of your books on Earth history," the Alterran snorted before going back into the TARDIS, the door slamming behind him.

"So there," the Time Lord muttered.

Undeterred by this not too uncommon altercation with his companion, he strode down the corridor toward the exit hatch, finding it standing open. "Ah, now we're getting somewhere," he said happily. "At least we're docked." Halfway down the accessway, he came across a porthole and peered out into the blackness. To his surprise, he saw a space suited individual connecting some cables to the side of the space station. "Well, well, well," he muttered delightedly. "So we're at an abandoned junkyard, are we?" He threw a quick glance back the way he came, debating whether or not to return for his companion, finally deciding against it. Jason was in no mood for exploring. He was, however, in the mood for fighting, which was both pointless and counter-productive.

The Doctor left the accessway and entered the Spaceport's main corridor where he came across a large observation window that had been heavily tinted against the light of the sun. He could see three or four docking arms extending from the station, each with spaceships in various states of decay moored alongside them. It reminded him of a marina he had once seen where derelict boats were left to rot. From his present vantage point, the Time Lord could see twenty such decaying craft and he filed this tidbit of information away in his mind as he moved on.

The interior of the station was only partially lit, and once he moved away form the observation port, the Doctor found himself in an enveloping darkness that almost seemed to cling to him. It was at that moment that he remembered the distress call and moved more cautiously along the corridor. The only person he had seen thus far was the one out in space, whom he did not know to be friend or foe. He did know that a station of this size should have a crew of more than two hundred. So where was everyone?

Rounding a corner, the Doctor saw a technician crouched on the floor, a box of tools beside him. He was shining a light into an open panel and looking intently into it. Not wanting to startle him, he cleared his throat.

"Well, you certainly took your time getting her," Eric snapped angrily, not bothering to look up. He closed the panel with a bang, adding, "I've already finished."

"I came as fast as I could," the Time Lord replied mildly.

In spite of the Doctor's precautions, the unfamiliar voice startled the young man. He let out an alarmed squeak when he finally looked up, the light going out as it dropped from his hand. "Who the devil are you?" he gasped.

"I'm the Doctor. I answered your distress call."

Eric was instantly on his feet, beside himself with joy. "It's been _months_ since we sent that. We'd given up hope anyone would ever come."

"How many of you are there?"

"Does that matter?" came the sudden, sharp reply from the other end of the corridor. The Doctor looked up to see a woman standing erect in the doorway. She seemed apprehensive as she stepped forward a few paces, looking him up and down in a way he found almost insulting.

"Aurora!" Eric said excitedly, going over to her. "This is the Doctor. He's come to help us."

"Has he?" she replied in an almost skeptical tone. "I'm Aurora, Acting Commander of the Spaceport Excelsior." Her voice hardened as she abruptly demanded, "Why are you really here?"

The Doctor blinked. He'd had his share of welcomes, both friendly and unfriendly, but never both from the same source. "My dear woman, I was answering your distress call. If you're not in need of my assistance, I'll just be on my way." So saying, he turned on his heel and headed down the corridor.

The same instant, Aurora slammed a fist on a control panel. The opposite end of the corridor was filled with a fine mist that completely engulfed the unsuspecting Time Lord.

The Doctor reeled back, almost choking from the mist. He spun around in anger. "Now see here…!" he began threateningly once he was able to speak.

The extremely apologetic Aurora held up her hands, suddenly the picture of congeniality. She begged the Time Lord's forgiveness, explaining that they had very recently repelled an invading force of Zygons.

Having already encountered the Zygons on Earth, the Doctor readily understood her apprehension. The Zygons could turn themselves into facsimile humans through a process that entailed taking a human prisoner and getting a body print from them. Aurora's people had discovered this and created the mist that induced a metabolic imbalance, forcing the Zygons to return to their natural state. This enabled the crew to identify and destroy the invaders. It wasn't until later that they learned the invaders had transmitted a message to their fleet, which could very well be on its way.

"Ever since then," Aurora was saying, "we've had to be on our guard in case they return."

"Being cautious is one thing," the Doctor remarked, "but too much caution can become para noia if one isn't careful."

* * *

After working steadily on his calculations, Jason started wondering why the Doctor had not returned. "K-9, how long has the Doctor been gone?"

"Forty-seven minutes, fourteen seconds, Young Master," K-9 replied.

"That long? Where the devil could he be?"

K-9's ears whirred nosily a moment. "Insufficient data."

Jason gave a non-communicative snort, throwing K-9 a scowl. He went to the exterior doors, peering out into the empty storeroom. "He's probably gotten himself into trouble, don't you think?" Hearing the whirring of the automation's ears, he added, "Taking into account this _is_ the Doctor we're talking about."

"Given all previous data, probability 87.32 percent, Young Master."

The Alterran gave K-9 a wry smile. "That's what I thought. You stay here and finish those calculations for me. I'll go look for him."

* * *

The Doctor had listened sympathetically as Aurora told her tale of woe. How the station had been extensively damaged during the Zygon attack. How they had been trying to evacuate everyone to the nearest habitable planet.

"First the war cut us off," Aurora said in summary, "then the attack came. And with our supplies running low, well, the Commander decided there was nothing else for it but to give up the station for lost and evacuate."

"We tried using some of the parts from the Zygons' ship to make repairs," Eric injected, "but…"

The Doctor nodded. "Grossly incompatible, I should imagine. Zygon controls always looked to me as if someone had built a console and then decided to grow mushrooms instead."

"You know about them, Doctor?" Aurora said unbelievingly.

"Oh, we've had the odd encounter," the Time Lord replied airily. "What was it you said? A war cut you off? I suppose it was over boundaries or mineral rights or some such nonsense."

"Do you mean…? You don't know about it?" Eric gasped.

"You can't expect me to keep track of every petty squabble in the cosmos," the Doctor snorted indignantly.

Before the astonished crew members could respond, Jason's clear voice suddenly rang out. "Doctor, where are you?"

"Over here," the Doctor called back, smiling broadly when his puzzled companion appeared at the end of the corridor. "So you came to take a look at the abandoned junkyard anyway, I see," he said mischievously.

Jason shot him a disapproving look but said nothing.

The Doctor's smile broadened. "Jason, I'd like you to meet Aurora, the Acting Commander of this station. And Technician Eric."

The Alterran aristocrat put on his best manners and smiled engagingly, giving a courtly bow. "Charmed." As he came forward, he passed through what remained of the cloud of mist and stopped dead in his tracks, sniffing the air curiously. "Roses?" he said in bewilderment. "Tell me, do you always perfume your—" Jason broke off as he suddenly became very lightheaded. He staggered forward, catching hold of the Doctor to keep from falling. "I'm sorry," he said softly, a hand to his head. "I don't know what came over me."

Aurora and Eric knew exactly what had come over him and exchanged a horrified look. "The mist!" Eric hissed in a frightened whisper. "He's reacting to the mist!"

"Quiet, you fool!" Aurora commanded, silently drawing her weapon.

Oblivious to the conspiracy going on a few yards away, the Doctor was in the process of easing his fast weakening companion to the floor.

Completely confused and thoroughly terrified, Jason clung tightly to his friend's arm. "Doctor, I…can't…breathe," he gasped out. "Wh…what's happening…to me?" Too weak to even sit up, he leaned back in the Time Lord's arms.

"You walked through a booby trap that was set for another lifeform," the Doctor replied gently. "Just relax. I'm sure you'll be alright in a minute." He looked over to the Commander for assistance, only to see the weapon in her hand.

Seeing the horrified expression on the Doctor's face, Jason followed his gaze and sank back in feigned defeat. "Some…alright," he muttered sarcastically.

"Get out of the way, Doctor," Aurora commanded coldly. "We know how to deal with his kind." So saying, she leveled her weapon at Jason.


	3. Chapter 3

**THREE**

To his horror, the incapacitated Jason realized this woman actually meant to kill him, but was unable to do more than listen as the Doctor argued for his life.

"No, you don't. You haven't the slightest idea what _his kind_ is," the Time Lord stated forcefully.

"Doctor, you said yourself you've dealt with Zygons," the woman with the gun argued.

"Yes. I've also dealt with Alterrans, both of whom can change their form. The one major difference is, Alterrans aren't hostile."

"All very interesting…"

"Undoubtedly, it's because Jason _is_ Alterran that he's reacting at all," the Doctor concluded.

The Commander was still unconvinced. She'd lost too many friends to just accept what she was being told without proof, something the Doctor gave her when he asked, "Just how long is it supposed to take for that mist of yours to work?"

Lowering her weapon, Aurora said resignedly, "Actually, it should've worked by now."

The Doctor breathed a sigh of relief, looking down at his equally relieved, but still confused companion. "Wh…what's…supposed to… happen?" Jason asked between breaths.

"The mist causes a metabolic imbalance that forces the Zygons to return to their true form," Aurora replied.

"What!" The Alterran was horrified. "Doctor…!"

"It's alright," the Doctor soothed. "Just calm down."

Jason shook his head vigorously. He could feel his strength failing and was certain the worst was about to happen. "Don't… you…see?" he said in a fast failing voice. "I…I could…misfire." With that, he promptly passed out.

"Oh, dear," the Doctor said under his breath, lying the unconscious youth on the floor before beginning a search of his pockets.

"What in the world is a misfire?" Eric asked, suddenly feeling completely lost.

"One of the worst things that can happen to an Alterran," the Doctor replied. He went on to explain that, unlike the Zygons, Alterrans could change form without the necessity of a body print. They were able to realign their molecular structure in a way that was difficult even for him to understand. What he did understand, however, was on those rare occasions when something went wrong, a misfire occurred. Instead of realigning, the molecular structure pulled itself completely apart, distorted and then returned to its original imprinted pattern. If left untreated, a very slow and unpleasant death would follow.

Despite their rarity, Jason had taken the precaution of supplying the Doctor with the medication necessary to treat him should he ever misfire, and it was for this the Time Lord was searching. He produced the small box from one of his capacious pockets with a sigh of relief.

Having never actually witnessed a misfire, the Doctor chose to play it safe and prepared the medication only seconds before Jason's body started to shimmer. The shimmering abruptly started to fizzle like static electricity and the Alterran's body distorted in shape several times, convulsing violently at the same time. Aurora grabbed one of the flailing extremities to steady it as the injection was administered.

Even knowing the reaction to the medication would be violent did not prepare the Doctor for what happened next. Jason went completely rigid and let out a wail of agony before, quite literally, turning to stone, his body crystallizing before the eyes of the horrified Time Lord.

The Doctor stared open mouthed at the fused mass of crystals that a moment before had been his companion. He looked over at the equally astonished Aurora. He sat silently for several minutes trying to reconcile what he had done. Accidental or not, he had just taken the life of a very dear friend. "I've killed him," he said at last.

Aurora had a different viewpoint. "Doctor, I can't tell you how sorry I am," she said guiltily. "If I hadn't been so paranoid, he'd still be alive."

The Doctor came out of his daze and looked up. "What?"

"It's my fault your friend is dead."

Before the Time Lord could argue one way or the other, the lights flickered and the sound of some very overworked machinery could be heard down the corridor. Aurora cursed under her breath. "There goes the power again," she grumbled.

Eric was already on his feet heading for the power room.

"The power?" The Doctor was justifiably puzzled. He was familiar with similar stations and knew them to be equipped with nuclear power as well as backup solar generators.

"We stripped down all the equipment when we built the base on the surface," the Acting Commander reminded. "Just after the last shuttle left, we had a meteor strike. It caused a massive systems failure and wiped out most of what little equipment we had left." Pausing, she added plaintively, "And now we're stranded."

"Stranded?" the Doctor echoed. "I counted more than two dozen ships—"

"Useless," Aurora interrupted. "Except for spare parts, that is. We've no fuel, and all the ships that were space worthy were used as transports until they gave out. The last one was used to shuttle everybody to the surface. And now that one will never fly again."

"I'd say you have a very serious problem, Acting Commander Aurora," the Time Lord observed. "How can I help?"

The woman gave him an astonished look. "Help? After what I've done…you'd still help us?"

The Doctor held up a hand to silence her and then asked if they might be able to put his companion's crystallized form somewhere more dignified than the middle of the floor.

Aurora took him to one of the nearby rooms. Like all the others it had been stripped of its furnishings, only bare shelving remaining. The Doctor carefully placed the Alterran on what had once been a bed and drew a deep breath. Reluctantly, he turned toward the door and tried to sound more cheerful than he was. "Now, which way the power station?"

* * *

After floating in blackness for what seemed an eternity, Jason opened his eyes and groaned, shutting them immediately. His hands went to his pounding head and he groaned again. Everything was so fuzzy. _What happened?_ he wondered. The incident in the corridor returned vividly to mind, and a third groan escaped him.

"Doctor…?" Jason said weakly, then more loudly when he did not receive a reply. He struggled to sit up, a hand staying at his throbbing temple. "Doctor?" He looked around the bare room, wondering why his friend had left him alone. It wasn't until he stood up that the reason became clear, his own crystallized form lying in an inert mass upon the bed. He was neither dead nor alive but in a state of suspension, his consciousness trapped. Until his body was returned to normal, he would be fully aware of all that went on, but silent and invisible to all save himself.

Jason stared at the crystallized mass in horrified fascination. He'd studied this phenomenon in medical school, but never in his wildest dreams did he imagine experiencing it first hand. "I'm…dreaming," he said shakily. "I've…I've had a misfire, and I'm…hallucinating, that's all. There's nothing to worry about, is there?" Knowing of only one way to find out, he turned to the door and walked slowly towards it, closing his eyes as he drew nearer. Inwardly he prayed he'd bang his nose against the solid sheet of metal, but instead he found himself standing in the corridor, having passed straight through the bulkhead.

His worst fears confirmed, Jason decided the first thing he needed to do was find the Doctor. What he would do next, he had no idea.


	4. Chapter 4

**FOUR**

"This is quite an impressive lash up," the Doctor remarked as he looked into the life support unit. There was an enormous tangle of cable cascading down from the open wall panels, some of which were dangling free while others were connected into several pieces of mismatched equipment.

"We did what we could when the main systems failed," Aurora told him. "Most of this came from those ships you saw. We were lucky Ramsay was here or we never would've survived this long."

The Doctor nodded approvingly. "I see. And now that your power station's going bad, you'll be losing what little life support you have."

"No, we won't" came a deep voice from behind them.

The Doctor turned to see a large, dark man wearing a space suit looming in the doorway. "Ah! An optimist at last," he chirped brightly.

Ramsay gave him a disapproving look before addressing his Commander. "I've just finished tying the life support systems into the power station from the starliner _SILENT TRADER_."

Aurora was puzzled. "But I thought…"

"Oh, she'll never fly again, but her solar generator still works well enough to keep this lot going."

"Look at the bright side, Aurora," the Doctor said cheerily. "Now you won't freeze to death when the lights go out."

"You must be the one Eric told me about," Ramsay observed dryly.

"Ramsay, this is the Doctor," Aurora informed quickly. "He says he can help us."

"The only way you can help us is to get us off this decaying hunk of junk," Ramsay snorted. A thought struck him and he scowled over at the Doctor. "Hang on a minute, how did you get onboard, anyway? I was just outside and there're no new ships out there. I _know_ I'd've noticed that."

"My ship isn't moored among your derelicts, Mr. Ramsay," the Time Lord stated matter of factly, "she's inside one of them. And, at the moment, I'm afraid I don't recall which one."

"Inside?"

"Yes," the Doctor grinned unabashedly.

Before the Engineer could inquire further, the Commander was leading the way to the power station. "I'm sure we'll be able to locate it for you, Doctor," she was saying as they moved through the dimly lit passageway.

"That's very kind of you Aurora. You can't miss it. It's a sort of large blue box with a light on top."

Aurora wasn't listening. "If we can get full power restored, even for only half an hour, we'll be able to transmat down to the surface."

The Doctor stopped dead. "Transmat. You have a transmat?" The woman beside him nodded slowly, making him suspicious. "It does work, doesn't it?" he then asked.

Ramsay shook his head. "No, I took it off-line to conserve power. It'll probably need—"

"Then I suggest you go and see to it, Ramsay," Aurora cut in sharply. "We'll need everything ready to go should the Doctor succeed in giving us full power."

Ramsay shot the Doctor a dubious look. "Good luck," he said before setting off down the corridor.

"Commander, I think you may be overestimating my abilities," the Time Lord said darkly. "I haven't even seen—"

"I know, Doctor," she replied quickly. "I just…I had to get rid of him somehow. The last thing we need is to have Ramsay breathing down our necks. He's such a fuss-budget when it comes to the station's systems. And with the range we'll be covering, the transmat will need to be in perfect working order if it's going to handle maximum power."

They arrived at the power station and the Doctor looked inside. "The question is, can your power station handle maximum power?" he asked pointedly. Aurora gave him a dubious look, an expression of abject hopelessness coming to her pale eyes. The Doctor could see there was more to all this than she'd told him and said firmly, "Aurora, I think you should tell me just how badly damaged this station is."

* * *

Jason felt as if he'd been wandering forever in his search for the Doctor. Not that he knew what he was going to do once he found him. He happened upon the Command Center and went in, discovering for himself the full extent of the damage and the crew's desperate situation. Most of the control stations were inoperative and those that were operating seemed to be doing so on half-power. A buzzer sounded and then a voice called, "Eric?" Jason turned to see the vaguely famil iar face of Aurora on the view screen.

"Eric's not back yet, Aurora," a haggard young woman replied wearily.

"That's alright, Shawna, you'll do," the Commander said gently. "I'm down in the power station. The Doctor's going to see if he can restore full power so we can get the transmat working again."

The mention of the Time Lord's name immediately grabbed Jason's attention. Shawna, on the other hand, was more interested in Aurora's statement. "Restore full power? Can he really do that?"

"We're not sure yet, he's still working on it. I just wanted you to know in case—" Aurora broke off when the Doctor said something. She disappeared from the screen and the Doctor ap peared, carefully explaining to Shawna exactly what he needed her to do for him.

By this time the invisible Jason wasn't listening to either of them. He was on his way out of the Command Center and heading, he hoped, for the power station.

* * *

Before leaving the Doctor to his work, Aurora gave him a radiation suit that she insisted he wear at all times while in the power station's control room. Radiation leaks were becoming increasingly more common and the last thing she wanted was to be responsible for another death due to her own negligence.

* * *

Jason had walked so long he was convinced he was completely lost when he suddenly came upon an area he recognized, this being the entrance to the accessway to the docks where the derelict ships were moored. He looked out the same large observation port the Doctor had happened upon and studied the numerous, unfamiliar shapes. Among them he saw a very familiar shape as a space suited human came out a hatch in one of the docking arms. He moved hand over hand along the metal framework until he reached his objective, stopping for what was apparently a simple operation. Within a few minutes, he was returning to the hatch.

"Now what was that all about?" Jason muttered, squinting against the glare streaming through the window. He struggled for several minutes to make out what the person had done, but this proved impossible. Finally he could resist no longer and was about to go back to the main airlock when the reason for the space walk became plainly visible. A section of the docking arm promptly blew up.

The explosion shook the already badly damaged station, sending debris in all directions, a great deal of which slammed into the dangerously weakened hull. The power station was the nearest thing to the docking arm and the stabilizers on that side of the station momentarily failed, causing it to pitch sideways.

The Doctor was thrown across the reactor control room and into the far wall, the force of the impact leaving him stunned.

On the Command deck, Aurora and the others were thrown to the floor, many of the remaining systems shorting out at the same time. Within minutes, the crew was assessing the damage, which turned out to be considerable.

Jason was still staring out the observation port, he being the only one unaffected by the pitching and swaying of the structure. He looked around, wondering if the saboteur were still in the area and went to investigate, finding two men struggling into space suits just outside the main airlock.

"I'm not going out there during a meteor shower with no shields, Ramsay," Eric was protesting as the other man fastened him in. "I've seen what just one of those things can do to solid metal. You and I don't stand a chance."

"That was no meteor, you idiot," the Engineer replied forcefully. "That was an explosion if ever I felt one. One of those wrecks out there just blew itself to pieces. And if we don't take care of them now, one of others might go, too. Only this time it'll take all of us with it. Now, come on!" Ramsay punctuated his comment by jamming the young man's helmet on and locking it into place. He then dragged him and an odd looking piece of equipment into the airlock.

The bewildered Jason returned to the observation port and watched as the men moved slowly into space. Then, to his horror, he watched helplessly as they began cutting the tethers on the moored ships, setting them adrift in space.

"No!" the Alterran screamed in a voice no one could hear. "The TARDIS is in one of those!"


	5. Chapter 5

**FIVE**

After regaining his senses, the Doctor staggered out of the power station and called the Command Center on the intercom.

"Doctor, are you alright?" Aurora asked in an anxious voice.

"Just a bang on the head, nothing serious," the Time Lord replied dismissively. "What happened?"

"Either an explosion from one of the derelict ships, or a meteor strike. Take your pick. My engineers can't seem to agree."

"How about an explosion caused by a meteor strike?" came the helpful reply. "Whatever it was, it probably caused quite a bit of external damage near the power station," the Doctor said seriously. "Do you have any sensors still functioning?"

"A few."

"Good. See if you can detect any radiation leakage. Just internal, mind you."

"Only internal?"

"Yes. Anything outside should be shielded by the hull. It's inside, where I am, that concerns me. I'd rather not start glowing in the dark, if you don't mind. I'm sure it would make it terribly difficult to sleep."

Shawna giggled and Aurora turned to look at her, suddenly realizing that it had been a very long time since she'd heard anyone on the station laugh.

The Acting Commander had been mystified by the Doctor from the beginning and was becoming increasingly more baffled. How could he keep his sense of humor in the midst of such chaos? Had she known him as well as Jason, she would very likely have been on the verge of panic. The Time Lord always seemed to become more cheerful the more hopeless things got.

* * *

By following the Doctor's voice, Jason finally managed to locate him. At the end of the corridor was a piece of equipment he recognized and he realized, to his annoyance, that he had actually circumnavigated the entire station. The Doctor had been in or near the power station the whole time and this was just a few steps away from where the Alterran had started.

"Doctor, we've picked up an isolated radiation leak and—" Aurora broke off, scowling down at the console beside her. "That can't be right. Shawna, check it for me." Looking up, she said, "Doctor, the sensors show the radiation leaking from the control room, but instead of spreading out it just…stops."

"What?"

"I know. It can't be right, but that's what the readings say. We're checking them again to find the problem."

Only Jason knew what this information meant and was ecstatic about it. "No, it's me! Doctor, it's me! I'm not dead. Can't you see? I'm not dead!"

Unable to see or hear his excited companion, the Doctor stood thoughtfully for a moment, mulling over the puzzling information. "Keep checking and let me know what you find. I'll wait outside the power room until you're sure it's clear."

The screen went blank and the Doctor's face seemed to darken at the same time. Turning, he went slowly down the passage, stopping outside the room where Jason's crystallized form had been taken. Drawing a deep breath, he entered the room, taking a seat across from the bed.

The sight of his inert, lump of a body caused Jason to shudder. If he didn't get the Doctor to hear him, he'd be like that forever, his consciousness trapped between dimensions. "Come on, Doctor," he said insistently. "You're a Time Lord. You must be able to hear me. Or at least sense my presence."

The Doctor sighed heavily. "I can't do it, Jason," he said sadly, causing the Alterran to jump. "I can't repair that power plant. It was beyond all hope before I even arrived, and now…" Throwing a sorrowful look at the door, he asked, "How can I tell them that? They need hope, not more despair. They've had enough despair."

Jason blinked, never having seen this side of his friend before. The Doctor always seemed to be in such complete control that it was a bit of a shock to see him struggling with any sort of moral dilemma.

"They're all going to die, and I can't stop it." The Doctor looked at the form on the bed. "I can change the outcome, you know that. In fact, if you were here, you'd probably be telling me that very thing right now." Getting to his feet, he asked, "But do I have that right? If I transport them to the planet, I could be interfering with history. Perhaps even altering the very fabric of time. But if I don't help them…" Pausing, he said in a quiet voice, "If I don't, I may be just as guilty of killing them as I am of killing you, my friend."

"But I'm not dead!" Jason cried out in frustration.

The Doctor's moral agony was interrupted when Aurora called on the intercom. "Doctor, we've pinpointed where the radiation leak stops."

"Excellent! Where?"

"It's the room where we put you friend's…er, body."

The Doctor's eyes grew wide and he spun around, staring at the crystallized mass across the room.

"Doctor, did you hear me?"

"Yes, I heard you, Aurora. That's very interesting."

"Doctor, Alterrans absorb radiation!" Jason exclaimed. "You _must_ remember! Alterrans ab sorb radiation!" He repeated this one message, over and over. Somehow, he just had to get through, for the sake of all their lives.

Whether it were Jason or just himself no one could say, but the Doctor suddenly realized what was happening. "Of course!" he gasped. "He's absorbing the radiation."

"How's that again, Doctor?" the Commander asked.

"Alterrans absorb radiation. Jason's not dead," he said startlingly.

"What? Doctor—"

"No time to explain. I've got to get back to the power station." So saying, he switched off the intercom and then, very carefully, picked up his apparently living companion and carried him from the room.

* * *

Aurora was already thinking the Doctor wasn't as stable as he first appeared and went down to the power station, finding him sitting calmly in the corridor just outside the open doorway to the reactor control room. He had placed Jason's crystallized form against the far wall and was watching it intently.

"Doctor, what are you doing?" Aurora asked quietly.

"A small experiment in energy transduction," he replied without looking up.

Aurora sighed heavily and sat down beside him. Now she was certain the Doctor's sense of humor was a cover for the fact that he was stark raving mad. "Doctor, before I was saddled with this command, I was a medical officer," she began patiently. "And I can tell you that that block of crystals in there is completely inert. No energy emissions. No movement. No vital signs. Nothing. In short, Doctor, it's dead."

"That's what you think," Jason snorted indignantly.

"You don't know Alterrans as well as I do," the Time Lord replied softly. "And I'm afraid I don't know them as well as Jason does, or this never would've happened."

"Doctor, we've been over this—"

"Alterrans are silicon-based lifeforms, you see; their basic molecular structure crystalline."

"Yes, I know. You've already—"

"Supposing…" the Doctor said, cutting her off again. "Just supposing I miscalculated when I gave him the bonding agent. If Jason's molecular structure had been pulled apart at that moment, it's just possible it bonded itself back together in its most basic, crystalline form."

Aurora considered a moment, only to shake her head. "I still don't see how that can make you believe he'd still be alive."

"Perhaps _alive_ isn't precisely the right word. Dormant might be a better one. Anyway, I think he's become trapped and hasn't the energy to free himself. Your reactor leak may be just what he needs to do just that."

"Yes!" By now Jason was bounding around the room, unable to contain himself. He was also amazed at how close the Doctor had come to the truth. "Yes, yes, yes!"

"You're sure it's not just wishful thinking on your part?" the Commander asked, feeling a little sorry for this strange man whom she felt was grasping at straws.

"What if it is?" the Doctor replied. He turned his gaze back into the room, adding, "Then again, what if it isn't?"

* * *

Inside the life support unit, the saboteur was at work once again, this time disconnecting the cables from the mismatched equipment strewn about the room. The sound of someone struggling with the door's entry mechanism caused him to jump. He was grateful nothing worked properly anymore as it took several tries for the person outside to open the door, giving him time to turn off the lights and hide.

When the door finally opened, Eric entered, having gone to life support to check for damage. He found the cables hanging loose and assumed they had been jarred loose by the explosion. He immediately began repairing them, unaware of the fact that anyone was in the room with him. By the time he realized this it was too late. A savage blow from behind knocked him to the deck before he had the chance to turn around. A second blow knocked him unconscious.

Picking up the roll of duct tape the young man had been using on his repairs, the saboteur bound Eric's hands behind him and then tightly against his body, going on to bind his legs at the knees and ankles.

When Eric finally regained his senses, he found he couldn't move and started to struggle, stopping when he heard a chuckle from across the room. Craning his neck he saw, to his horror, that Ramsay was disconnecting the last of the cables.

"Ramsay, what're you doing?" the aghast Eric gasped. "You'll kill us if you shut that off!"

"I know," Ramsay replied coldly. "I'd planned to let this station just shake itself to pieces, but that interfering Doctor forced me to change all that."

"What? Ramsay, you're talking crazy. What're you talking about?"

The Engineer laughed at the irony of it. "The destruction of this outpost that you all think I've been trying so hard to save. By the time anybody remembers it, it'll all be over."

"You're a spy!" Eric gasped. "You stinking traitor! You're working for them!" He struggled in vain against his bonds, determined to get loose so he could kill the Chief Technician.

"Think what you like. I work for me now. No more orders. No more schedules to follow. I'm just an ordinary citizen sitting on a literal gold mine," Ramsay said happily.

"What _are_ you talking about?"

"Minerals, my boy, and lots of 'em. That planet's loaded. Gold, silver, platinum, titanium. You name it. I ran the tests when the survey unit was here, remember?" The big man crossed to stand over the helpless Eric. "Now…they're all mine."

"Don't be a fool," Eric sneered. "Everybody from the station is down there. You'll never—"

"They'll never last the first winter," Ramsay announced. "I took the precaution of withholding a few rather vital pieces of equipment from the solar generators. They were expecting us to bring it, and then…"

"You sabotaged the shuttle?" Eric gasped in horror. "You're mad. You'll never get away with it."

"Who's going to stop me? You?" Ramsay asked, sealing the young man's mouth with tape. "Now, you will keep quiet like a good boy, won't you, Eric?" he cooed as he made certain the boy couldn't escape. "I've a few more things to do, yet, and I wouldn't want you to spoil the surprise." With an evil grin, he switched off the lights and shut the door, leaving the horrified Eric alone in the dark.

* * *

Aurora had run out of things to say and sat with the Doctor outside the power station, watching the inert mass of crystals. After a long silence, she finally asked, "So…what's supposed to happen?"

"I don't know," came the unhelpful reply. "If nothing else, at least he's keeping the radiation from leaking into the station." A thought struck him and the Doctor asked, "Tell me, was Ramsay ever able to repair your transmat?"

Aurora gave him a tired smile. "No, I don't think so. I'm not sure he had time, what with the explosion and having to cut all the tether lines—"

"What!" The Doctor was aghast and jumped to his feet. "He cut all the…? Are you telling me he set all the derelict ships adrift?"

"Yes, why?"

"_Why?_ Aurora, my TARDIS was in one of those derelicts!"

The Acting Commander blanched visibly. "Oh, my God…" she breathed. "Now I really have gone and done it, haven't I? First I kill your friend. And now I've gone and killed us all."

Before the Time Lord could respond, a high-pitched whine blasted through the station's loudspeaker, forcing them to cover their ears. The sound continued to grow in intensity until it rendered everyone in the station unconscious. Everyone, that is, except Jason, who suspected the person he had seen planting the explosive was at work once again.


	6. Chapter 6

**SIX**

Jason was absolutely correct. Ramsay was already entering the Command Center finding all but the Commander present. He knew the affects of the sonic disturbance wouldn't last long and quickly bound the unconscious crew in the same manner as Eric. Then he went to look for Aurora, finding her in the corridor outside the power station and the Doctor near the doorway to the reactor control room a few feet away. Within a few minutes, they too were securely bound.

The Engineer was about to leave when another thought struck him. If it hadn't been for this interfering stranger, he never would've had to act so hastily. Nor would he have had to expose himself to so many risks. The traitorous Ramsay dragged the unconscious Time Lord into the reactor control room and then shorted out the door mechanism, sealing him inside. With an evil smirk on his face the Engineer left, knowing the radiation leakage would kill the helpless Time Lord slowly and painfully.

Jason had been a silent witness to Ramsay's cold-blooded act and was horrified when the door was fused. Although reluctant to leave his friend, he knew there was nothing he could do to help him and followed after the traitorous Ramsay, watching in bewilderment as he made yet another space walk. This time to disconnect the power cables from the only ship left in dock. The name _SILENT TRADER_ was emblazoned on its hull and Jason gave an amused grunt when he saw it. "They should've called it _SILENT __**TRAITOR**_," he muttered. A sudden thought struck him and he looked back at the space suited figure. "Now…just how do you intend to get out of here, anyway? You can't use the transmat. The people on the ground will be suspicious. And you haven't got a—" Jason turned his gaze back to the starliner. "Or have you…?"

Passing through the hull of the station and then into the battered starliner, the Alterran looked around himself in amazement. He had expected to find the inside of the ship as bad as the out. Instead found himself on the flight deck of a fully operational, first class interstellar space craft that could be made ready for takeoff within minutes.

To his horror, Jason realized he was the only one who knew what was about to happen—and was completely powerless to stop it from happening.

Another explosion suddenly rocked the Spaceport and Jason looked up in time to see one of the unstable reactors rupture into space. A large chuck of debris struck the traitorous Ramsay, snapping his lifeline and carrying him helplessly into the depths of space.

The invisible Alterran stood staring out the window, not quite believing what he'd just seen. It was almost too good to be true, he thought. A secondary explosion brought him back to reality, reminding him of the Doctor's lethal proximity to the unstable reactors. The power plant could go at any moment, taking his trapped friend with it. Somehow, he just _had_ to get him out.

Momentarily forgetting his ability to pass through walls, Jason dashed from the flight deck and though the ship, stopping dead when he reached the corridor to the exit hatch. "I've been here before," he muttered, looking around. He went to an open doorway and was delighted to see the TARDIS standing in the corner of the storeroom right where he'd left it.

"K-9," he said breathlessly. "K-9 might—" Shaking his head, Jason concluded, "No time," and continued on his way.

* * *

When the Doctor regained consciousness, he was able to free himself thanks to the tools across the room that Ramsay had overlooked in his haste.

"Doctor, I can't move!" Aurora called loudly from out in the hall, struggling in vain against her bonds.

"Just save your strength," the Time Lord called back as he searched along the wall for a manual release for the fused door. The lights flickered and then went out leaving the station in almost total darkness. The emergency lights came on, glowing dimly at the end of every corridor.

"Doctor!"

"Aurora, don't panic!" the Doctor said sharply. "It's just the lights."

Suddenly he realized there shouldn't be any light in the room with him and turned to see his companion's blue crystallized form glowing dimly across the room.

Having returned by this time, Jason saw it too and knew it meant his body was absorbing the massive amounts of radiation that were undoubtedly pouring in from the damaged reactor. He then reflected on the irony of how, without realizing, Ramsay had left the one thing in the control room that would insure the Doctor was not exposed to a lethal dose of radiation. Even so, he was still being exposed, notwithstanding the radiation suit, and needed to get out of the room as soon as possible.

Turning back to look at the Doctor, Jason felt it was now or never. He simply _had_ to make contact. The connections to the life support system were hanging on by a thread and all it would take was one good jolt to knock them off. Crossing to where the Time Lord was still searching the walls, Jason concentrated with all his might to make himself heard. Taking a deep breath, he said firmly, "Doctor, you've got to hear me. You have simply got to hear me."

The Doctor's head suddenly started buzzing and he put a hand to his temple, wondering if he were feeling the effects of the radiation. Suddenly the answer became distinctly clear when he heard his companion's voice cry out in exasperation, "Doctor, please hear me!"

Startled, the Time Lord spun around, staring in amazement at the glowing shape on the floor. "Jason…?" he gasped.

Jason didn't know if he wanted to laugh, cry, or shout for joy, choosing instead to restrain himself. There was too much at stake for emotionalism. Drawing a deep breath to steady himself, he said evenly, "Doctor, it's Jason. Can you hear me?"

"Yes!" came the exuberant reply. The Time Lord was immediately beside the glowing form, bubbling over with joy, curiosity, and fascination.

"Doctor, there's a massive breach in one of the reactors," Jason informed. "I'm absorbing the radiation, but you shouldn't stay—"

"I've a bit of a problem there," the Doctor replied soberly. "I'm trapped in the control room."

"I know."

"You know? How?"

The Alterran sighed heavily. "I wish I could tell you, but there's no time. I can help you get out, though. You'll need to run a cable from my—from me to the door."

"What?" The Doctor was baffled. "How will that—?"

"Doctor, I don't have time to go into details," Jason said quickly. "I'm not sure how long we'll be able to talk. You need to wind the cable around me like you would with an electromagnet. You'll get a low voltage charge that should open the door."

The Time Lord gave the Alterran's now less than inert form a curious look before doing as instructed. "Jason, can you, huh…see me?" he asked hesitantly as he carefully wound the cable around the crystallized form.

"Yes," the invisible Jason replied amusedly from his place near the door. "I'm not trapped in the way that you think."

The Doctor's eyebrows went up and his companion could see the dozens of questions forming in his mind. "No time, Doctor" he said quickly. "No time. There's so much you don't know."

"How true," the Doctor said sagely. With the cable strung, he crossed to the door, throwing a quick glance across the room. "Well, here goes," he said hopefully and touched the cable to the opening mechanism. There was a crackle of power and the door jerked open a few inches. Encouraged, he tried again and was able to get the door open far enough to squeeze through. On the other side he found Aurora still struggling unsuccessfully with her bonds. She was both relieved and concerned when he finally emerged.

"Doctor, the radiation…" she said as he cut her loose.

"Don't worry, Commander," the Doctor grinned. "I've already told you. Alterrans absorb radiation."

Before Aurora could think of a suitable reply, the station was rocked as more stabilizers failed. There was a cacophony of bangs and clangs on the exterior hull and then the entire station went silent as all the machinery stopped.

"You've just lost power _and_ life support" Jason announced.

"What!" the Doctor gasped.

"I didn't say anything," Aurora said in bewilderment, only to be hushed by the Doctor as he returned to the partially open door. "Jason, say that again."

"I said, you've just lost your power and life support," his invisible companion repeated. "The connections were—"

Aurora cut off Jason's explanation. "Doctor, who are you—?"

"Aurora, please be quiet! I can't listen to both of you at the same time," the Time Lord snapped impatiently.

The Commander's eyes grew wide and she peered into the room, seeing only the glowing crystals on the floor. "Doctor, can you actually _hear_ him?" she asked softly, wondering if the Time Lord were crazy because he could hear the voice of a dead man, or her because she believed him.

It wasn't until that moment that the Doctor realized he hadn't actually heard Jason with his ears as much as with his mind, suddenly comprehending what his companion meant about not knowing how long they would be able to talk. Apparently the telepathic connection was only temporary.

Suddenly Jason's voice came through in an urgent tone. "Doctor, I can't explain, so you'll just have to trust me. Get everyone to the ship called _SILENT TRADER_. You'll be safe there."

"Alright," the Doctor agreed. He turned from the door, turning back when his companion added, "And don't bother looking for Ramsay. He's the one who did this to you."

The Time Lord had several hundred questions, but knew they'd have to wait. Looking at the bewildered woman beside him, he asked, "Aurora, do you know a ship called _SILENT TRADER_?"

Aurora scowled. "Yes," she replied slowly. "It's the only one left in dock. Why?"

"Because that's where we're going to take your crew."

* * *

The Doctor and Aurora moved as quickly as they could through the growing gloom. The emergency lighting was growing dimmer by the moment and would no doubt fail well before they reached the Command Center. The Commander felt along the wall for a locker where she prayed a few lanterns had been left behind. For the first time in weeks, luck was on her side and she found, not one, but four working lanterns. Armed with these, the two were able to move even more rapidly through the station.

The Doctor stopped at the life support unit, wanting to see if it were completely deactivated. Unable to make the door work, he was about to continue on when he heard muffled sounds from inside. "Someone must've gotten trapped in there when the power went out," he said, having to pry the door open. Inside he found the bound and struggling Eric, who confirmed what Jason had told him about Ramsay.

By the time the three reached the Command Center, the temperature within the station had dropped dramatically. They released the rest of the crew and headed for the _SILENT TRADER_. Once all were safely onboard, the Doctor announced he was going back for his companion, whom he had not heard since leaving the power station.

"Doctor, you can't go back in there with life support gone," Aurora protested.

"There's still plenty of air left, I should think. I'll probably freeze to death long before I asphyxiate," he said cheerily. "Anyway, I owe it to Jason to try. He just saved all our lives. The least I can do is try and save his."

The Commander sighed. "I still think this is all just wishful thinking on your part."

"Believe what you like. I'm still going."

"Oh, all right," Aurora conceded, grabbing a spacesuit to protect herself from the cold. "Then I'm coming, too. Even if it's just to say I told you so."

The Doctor flashed a broad smile, leading the way into the accessway and then back through the now tunnel-like corridors. The emergency lighting had completely failed by this time, the light from their lanterns cutting through the darkness like a beacon. Frost had started to form on the walls and floor and Aurora found the silence extremely disquieting. She tried not to let her ill-ease show and followed silently behind the Time Lord, watching his breath rising like smoke in the still and icy air.

Arriving at the power station at last, the Doctor forced the door further open. The first thing he noticed was the blue glow from the crystallized Alterran was gone. The reason for this became shockingly clear when he turned his light down to the floor. The fused mass of crystals had been transformed and lying in its place was Jason in his human form, the cable the Doctor had wound around his crystallized form still wrapped around his body. He was covered in a thin layer of frost and the Time Lord was certain he was frozen solid.

Fortunately, this was not the case. Even after the Alterran changed form, he continued to absorb the incoming radiation, maintaining the current that was running through the cable. This ongoing energy conversion had kept the air temperature around his body warmer than that in the room, and was the only thing that had prevented him from freezing to death.

The Doctor was at the boy's side instantly, pulling off a glove and searching for any signs of life. To his relief, he found a weak pulse. "He's alive," he announced, "but nearly half frozen."

"We've got to get him out of here," Aurora said firmly, and quite unnecessarily, the Doctor thought as he handed her his lantern. He cut the cable from around Jason's body and then lifted him from the floor, carrying him back to the starliner where, hopefully, they could revive him.


	7. Chapter 7

**SEVEN**

Eric told the others of Ramsay's plan to wipe out the entire station crew and take over the planet's mineral wealth, and since Jason had said not to look for him, they assumed a confederate had picked him up. It was not until the Alterran finally regained consciousness that the whole story came out.

"He was hit by a chunk of bulkhead, I think," Jason said in a quiet, tired voice. "It just…carried him out in to space."

"Oh, how horrible," Shawna whispered.

Eric was incensed. "How can you say that? He tried to kill us."

"I don't care," she replied. "I wouldn't wish something like _that_ on anyone. It's just too… horrible."

"It's better than what's ahead for us," Eric countered bitterly. "We still don't have unlimited supplies, you know. And once they're gone, we're going to starve."

"Wait a minute," the puzzled Jason broke in quietly. "Do you mean…? We're not still at the Spaceport, are we?"

"Where else would we be, dear boy?" the Doctor wanted know. "The TARDIS—"

"Is in one of the aft storerooms," his companion informed, much to the Time Lord's delight —and relief. "No, what I want to know is, why haven't any of you taken the ship to the surface? When I was on the flight deck, it was only minutes away from takeoff."

"What!" they all cried.

Jason winced. He still wasn't feeling one hundred percent and felt if he could get up to fifty percent he'd be doing well. Unfortunately, all this attention was doing nothing but wearing him out. He gave the Doctor a curious look. "I'd've thought _you_, at least, would've been up there by now, Doctor."

Aurora gave an amused grunt. "Are you kidding? He hasn't left this room since he brought you onboard."

Jason saw the Time Lord throw the officer an angry scowl at this apparently unwanted revelation. He smiled a tired, knowing smile. His friend was still unaware of his presence in the room during his moral upheaval, and despite this rare glimpse into the Time Lord's soul, Jason found that it only served to make him more perplexing than ever.

The Doctor caught the look and studied the Alterran back. During their travels he'd watched the young man grow and change. No doubt this incident would have a profound effect on him. Yet another event to mold him in preparation for the greatness the Doctor felt certain the future held for the unassuming young man who, at that moment, seemed to be on the verge of dropping off to sleep any second.

Pulling up the blankets, the Doctor said softly, "You get some rest. You deserve it after all that." He then went to the flight deck, finding it just as Jason described. It wasn't until he gave this good news to the crew that he learned, not to his great surprise, that Ramsay was the only pilot among them. After a small show of reluctance, he allowed himself to be persuaded into shuttling the stranded crewmembers to the newly established settlement.

Before departing, Eric pointed out that it might be a good idea to locate the equipment Ramsay had purposely omitted from the solar generators. Everyone agreed that this was a good idea and a thorough search of the ship was made for the vital parts. During the search, they discovered not only the equipment, but also a rough survey map of the planet showing numerous mineral deposits along with several ore samples. Someone even managed to locate the TARDIS.

Once everything and everyone was accounted for, the Doctor piloted the starliner to the planet, the journey lasting only a few minutes. Locating the new colony, on the other hand, took considerably longer. A massive storm front had blanketed the entire area, and due to the archaic, and unreliable nature of the radio equipment on the ground, Aurora's people were forced to wait for the weather to break before they could establish contact.

The Doctor could do little else but put the ship into orbit until the noticeably more cheerful crew could give him the exact coordinates for his landing. Seizing the opportunity, he went to talk to his uncharacteristically subdued companion.

"Feeling any better?" he asked as he entered the cabin.

"A bit." Snuggling further down into the blankets, Jason added, "I don't think I'll be warm for a month, though."

The Doctor's grave expression didn't change, and his companion feared the worst. "Doctor, what's wrong? The settlement? It's not—"

"What? Oh, no, they're still looking for it," the Time Lord replied, waving a hand toward the door. "No doubt they'll be able to give me the exact coordinates once the storm clears."

"Then what on earth's the matter? You look like you just lost your best friend."

"I almost did."

Realization dawned and Jason sighed heavily. "Doctor, what happened to me wasn't your fault. A few seconds either way and it never would've happened. It was just bad timing, that's all."

"That doesn't really help much. I'm supposed to be an authority on Time."

The Alterran smiled a tired smile. "I know. You're a Time Lord. Keeper of the immutable Laws of Time. Trained to observe, not interfere," he said in as lofty tone as he could manage.

"Something like that."

"Well, whatever it is, I'm just glad you didn't leave the crew when you saw you couldn't repair the power station."

The Doctor's astonished look caused Jason to blush slightly, which only served to give his pallid face a little color. "I, uh, was there when you were working all that out," he admitted guiltily.

"Were you, now?" the Doctor snorted. He was about to issue a firm rebuke when he recalled what he'd said during what he had thought to be a one-sided conversation. "I can't even accuse you of eavesdropping, can I? Since I was talking to you, in a way."

"I only wish _you_ could've heard _me,_ then."

"Yes, that reminds me," the Doctor said, seizing the chance to change the subject. "That was a telepathic link between us, wasn't it?"

"I don't know what else it could've been."

"I've been wondering about that, you see. Was it just temporary, caused by the suspension? Or is it possible you're genuinely telepathic?"

Jason considered a moment before shrugging his shoulders. "I have no idea. Either, I guess. It's possible the suspension triggered some latent ability I didn't know I had. Telepathy's actually quite common on my mother's side of the family."

"Yes, I know. I've met your Uncle Quinton."

The Alterran laughed for the first time since regaining consciousness, much to the delight of the Doctor, who was beginning to think the usually boisterous youth would remain solemn and withdrawn forever.

"Now you can't judge everyone by him," Jason smiled. "Being Lord Emperor gives one certain advantages."

"None the least of which is limitless power."

Before the Alterran could think of a suitable response, Shawna came in with the news that the settlement had finally been located.

The Doctor returned to the flight deck and within an hour the starliner was touching down just outside the newly established colony.

The ship was immediately surrounded by an excited throng of fellow crew members and in the confusion that followed, the Doctor slipped away unnoticed. When order was finally restored, the station's real Commander asked Aurora to explain everything that had happened. She turned to introduce the Doctor, only to find he was no longer there. Thinking he'd gone back to his companion's cabin, Aurora went into the ship to get him and was just passing one of the aft storerooms when she heard a strange wheezing and groaning sound. She looked in just in time to see the TARDIS dematerialize.

* * *

The next story in this arc "THE GATHERING DOME"

* * *

Silent Witness © 1993 Margaret Price is an original work written for the enjoyment of Doctor Who fans. No copyright infringement is intended.  
Original series broadcast on the BBC. Format © BBC 1963  
Doctor Who and Tardis are trademarks of the BBC.  
The story and all other original characters are © Margaret Price


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